Solanum laciniatum

Solanum laciniatum (also known as poroporo or bullibulli) a soft-wooded shrub native to the east coast of Australia, notably Victoria and Tasmania. It also occurs in Western Australia and New Zealand, where some authorities consider it to be introduced. It is similar to Solanum aviculare, with which it shares the common name kangaroo apple. The common name refers to the likeness of the leaf shape to a kangaroo paw print. This plant is currently being cultivated to produce corticosteroid drugs.

Description

An erect shrub. It is soft wooded. It can be 3 m tall. It can spread 2-3 m wide. It has bluish-purple leaves. It is short lived. It becomes spreading and straggly with age. The leaves are lobed and 30 cm long. They are deeply divided and dark green. The flowers are deep purple-blue with wavy edges. The flowers are larger than Solanum aviculare. The flowers are 5 cm across. The fruit are round and green. They are 2-3 cm across. They change to yellow-orange on maturity.

Edible Uses

The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked, used as either a sweet fruit or a vegetable, but it must be thoroughly ripe — unripe fruit is poisonous. It is best harvested after it has fallen naturally from the plant, at which point it will have lost its unpleasant acidity. In practice the fruit tastes considerably worse than it looks: it is sickly sweet and often bitter, with quality varying from plant to plant and even year to year on the same plant. The fruit reaches up to 2cm in length and contains a large number of flat seeds.

Traditional Uses

The ripe fruit can be eaten. They must be very ripe and soft. They can be put into sand to ripen. The fruit can be used in chutney.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Medicinal Uses

The plant is a source of steroids widely used in the pharmaceutical industry, with the unripe berries being the richest source.

Known Hazards

All green parts of the plant, and the unripe fruits, are poisonous.

Distribution

It is a warm temperate to subtropical plant. It suits sandy areas. It often grows after fire. It grows in damp and shaded places. It suits hardiness zones 9-11. Tasmania Herbarium. In Sichuan and Yunnan. Arboretum Tasmania.

Where It Grows

Asia, Australia*, China, New Zealand, Tasmania*,

Cultivation

Succeeds in most fertile soils in a sunny position. Tolerates temperatures down to at least -7°c in Australian gardens but is not very hardy in Britain. It sometimes succeeds as a shrub outdoors in the mildest areas of the country but is more usually cut to the ground by winter cold. It can, however, be grown at the foot of a warm sunny wall and be treated as a herbaceous perennial. As long as the roots are given a good mulch in autumn they should survive quite cold winters. Alternatively, it is possible to grow the plant as an annual. If the seed is sown in early spring in a warm greenhouse and planted out after the last frosts it can fruit in its first year though yields will be lower than from plants grown as perennials. There is much confusion between this species and S. aviculare. Some botanists unite the two under S. aviculare whilst others say that S. laciniatum is a tetraploid form of that species. S. laciniatum is treated as a distinct species here.

Propagation

Sow seed in spring in a warm greenhouse; germination takes 2–3 weeks at 20°c. Prick seedlings into individual pots once large enough to handle. For annual cultivation, plant out after the last expected frosts with some protection such as a cloche until established. For perennial cultivation, particularly at the limits of cold-hardiness, keep plants in the greenhouse through their first winter in fairly large pots (12cm or larger) to accommodate their vigorous root growth. Top-growth may die back over winter, but roots should survive if greenhouse temperatures stay above about -5°c. Plant out in early summer the following year; plants will be somewhat hardier in their second winter. Cuttings of half-ripe wood taken in July or August root very easily in a frame within a couple of weeks. Pot into fairly large pots and overwinter in the greenhouse before planting out in early summer.

Other Uses

In climates warmer than Britain, this plant is frequently grown as a hedge.

Notes

There are about 1400 Solanum species.

Synonyms

Also Known As

Large poroporo, Mayakitch, Meakitch, Mookitch

References (35)

• Bodkin, F., 1991, Encyclopedia Botanica. Cornstalk publishing, p 934
• Boyce, J., 2009, Van Diemen's land. Black Inc. p 116 (Possibly as Solanum macinatal)
• Brickell, C. (Ed.), 1999, The Royal Horticultural Society A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. Convent Garden Books. p 965
• Cameron, M., (Ed.) 1981, A Guide to Flowers & Plants of Tasmania. Reed p 88
• Cherikoff V. & Isaacs, J., The Bush Food Handbook. How to gather, grow, process and cook Australian Wild Foods. Ti Tree Press, Australia p 117, 120, 196

More from Solanaceae

Tubocapsicum anomalum

Vassobia breviflora

Withania coagulans

Indian rennet, Indian cheese-maker

Withania somnifera

Withania, Winter cherry

🌱

ZZZ Atropa belladonna

Belladonna, Deadly nightshade

🌱

ZZZ Datura quercifolia

Oak leaf datura